Fireside Chat

Ulrich Schnauss

Domino, Independiente, London

Born in 1977 in Kiel, Germany - a post-industrial seaport at the Baltic - Schnauss began improvising chord changes on an old piano in his parents' flat; a process which remains the backbone of his songwriting to this day. His formative years bred a love for a broad spectrum of music ranging from Tangerine Dream to Chapterhouse to early bleep and breakbeat tracks. The inevitable pull of the big city meant a move to Berlin in 1996. By this time Ulrich's musical output had already become prolific with a variety of pseudonyms (most notably View To The Future and Ethereal 77) veering from techno to drum'n'bass via electronica. His first two albums under his real name established his pedigree as an outstanding electronic composer, but he managed to take it further by developing his interest in songwriting for electronic music, born of his love for such giants as My Bloody Valentine's Kevin Shields and Cocteau Twins' Robin Guthrie. He then released his third album a few years later: 'Goodbye'. But it appears it was thankfully not a real goodbye from Mr Schnauss and lucky for us it was a "hello" in this, his Fireside Chat.